Montgomery Co. program gives girls career advice

Katherine Anaya, a 17-year-old Watkins Mill junior, took part in last year\'s \'Preparing for Success\' and is now busy lining up an internship. She hopes to be a neurosurgeon. (WTOP/Kate Ryan)

ROCKVILLE, Md. – You’ve got a job interview. Those words can fill any applicant with excitement – and raw fear.

No one wants to blow a great opportunity, but how do you wow them in that interview you worked so hard to get? High school girls are getting a chance to master that skill and learn how to map their career goals at an event this Saturday.

“Preparing for Success” is a free, one-day program sponsored by the Montgomery County Women’s Bar Foundation. Girls will receive information on everything from dressing for success to how to apply to college to nailing that job interview.

Katherine Anaya, 17 and a junior at Watkins Mill High School in Montgomery County, learned about “Preparing for Success” last year through friends and her school counselor.

Anaya said she was encouraged by how women managed to rise to the top of their professions even when life put them on a path they didn’t plan.

“There was a firefighter who was amazing. It was awesome to see how she could be a sergeant, she could be at the top and handle her family at the same time!”

Anaya dreams of being a neurosurgeon and says she knows there’s a lot of competition out there combined with a tough job market.

“There are a lot of people saying they can’t get a job, they aren’t using their majors. It’s really scary.”

But Anaya says the prospect is less scary after sitting down with women and finding out how they navigated similar challenges. Anaya encourages friends to take advantage of the program.

“It’s free,” she says with a smile, adding, in the current job market students should “Grab all the opportunities you have and stand out.”

Preparing for Success is funded and sponsored by the Montgomery County Women’s Bar Foundation. Learn more at Preparing4Success.com.